Chapter 205: Coming to the fore

Dou Zhao was immersed in his beautiful vision of the future. The maids in Jing'an Temple Hutong not only did not make a big fuss after Dou Zhao woke up, but also, when Wang Yingxue was imprisoned and there was no one to take charge of the situation in Jing'an Temple Hutong, they first comforted their father, then persuaded their aunt, and expressed their attitude towards the Fifth Madam and others through their words and deeds. They quickly took control of the situation, which made them feel at ease. They all breathed a sigh of relief and regained their previous composure. After Dou Zhao went to bed, the maids each performed their duties - they brewed new tea for the women in the hall, led the maids to clean up the firecracker debris on the floor, arranged people to keep watch, counted the dishes for the banquet... the house gradually became orderly. The maidservant on the stove even sent a little servant to ask Aunt Liu: "It's getting late, what kind of midnight snack would you ladies like?"

Nanny Liu thought of Dou Zhao's dignified face. She knew that if the sky fell, there would be tall people to hold it up. This matter had nothing to do with her, but she felt inexplicably nervous. She had no mood to eat any midnight snack. She just wanted to go back quickly to report the matter to the Second Madam and ask her for a decision. But because the Fifth Madam was present, she had to ask the Fifth Madam for her instructions.

This was completely beyond Mrs. Fifth's expectations.

Logically speaking, after such a big thing happened, Dou Zhao should have cried even if she didn't commit suicide. However, she didn't shed a single tear. Not only did she quickly accept Dou Ming's marriage, she also immediately thought of a way to deal with it. She was confident and seemed to have been prepared for it.

But she immediately rejected the idea.

Only she, Mrs. Cai and the Second Lady knew about this matter, and they would never tell Dou Zhao.

In other words, Dou Zhao was born with this kind of calmness and fearlessness in the face of danger?

And Dou Shiying. He couldn't accept that his second daughter married off in place of his eldest daughter. He was so angry that he would definitely do something extreme. But he didn't expect that he would see through the mystery so quickly and become so angry that he fainted.

Mrs. Zhao was also much more rational than she thought.

When she heard that Dou Ming had replaced Dou Zhao in the bridal sedan, she grabbed Wang Xu's clothes and was about to report it to the authorities, making Wang Xu extremely angry. However, except for being very angry at the beginning of the incident, her behavior afterwards became more measured. It was obvious that she did not want to make a big deal out of it and put Dou Zhao in the spotlight before the matter of Dou Ming marrying into the Wei family was finalized.

The Fifth Madam felt that this matter was not done properly and might not go as smoothly as she had originally thought...

Then I can't leave Jing'an Temple Hutong even more.

If things change, I can respond in time...

The fifth wife wondered whether she should tell Dou Zhao about the Ji family's affairs.

For a smart person who is proud and arrogant, speaking from the heart is always more effective than hiding things and scheming.

She said to Aunt Liu in a negotiating tone, "It seems that the women of the Ji and Wang families have not left, and there is no one in charge here. We can't just abandon it like this, right? We should stay here! We also need to send someone to say hello to the Ji and Wang families."

The female members of the Ji family who came to watch the ceremony were all placed in the guest room in the next courtyard, and they have not appeared since Ji was called over.

However, Wang Xu was frightened by what Madam Zhao had done, so Madam Wu had to have Wang Xu sent to the side room to rest, and sent someone to the Yu Hospital to invite the imperial physician. Before the imperial physician arrived, Gao and others did not dare to move Wang Xu and had to stay.

The Fifth Madam spoke to her like this only because she was serving the Second Madam. Madam Liu understood this very well, so she didn't dare to take advantage of her. She complimented the Fifth Madam on her thoughtful consideration. At this moment, a little maid ran in in a panic.

"Oh no!" She hastily bowed to the Fifth Madam and said, "I don't know why, but the Sixth Madam suddenly started crying while talking to the Ji family!"

This little maid was sent by the Fifth Madam to the next room to gather information.

The Fifth Madam couldn't help but exchange glances with Aunt Liu.

It seems that the Sixth Madam knew that Dou Ming and Dou Zhao had married into the Wei family.

Mrs. Wu thought for a moment and said, "Let's go and persuade him!"

Sometimes, although it is funny to cover your ears to steal the bell, you still have to cover your ears.

She took Madam Liu along the corridor to the next door compartment. On the way, they met Ji.

Ji's eyes were red, her face was tightly bound, and she looked very ugly.

The fifth wife smiled and called out "Sixth brother's wife", but Ji didn't even look at her. She brushed past her and went straight to the east room where Dou Zhao was resting.

"Suxin, get out. I have something to say to your young lady." Ji quickly dismissed Suxin. With tears in her eyes, she grabbed Dou Zhao's hand, who had stood up after hearing the noise, and choked up, "Shougu, tell me the truth. If I let you marry Jianming, would you be willing?"

Dou Zhao was stunned.

When Ji saw this, tears fell straight down her face: "Shougu, this matter is all the fault of Sixth Aunt. I know that our old lady has taken a fancy to you. I thought she would instigate the Dou family and the Wei family to cancel the engagement. Although Jianming is not a good match, if you are willing, I will help you speak in front of my sister-in-law. With your intelligence, it is not difficult to please her. But I didn't expect them to do such a thing as marrying on behalf of others... If you are willing to marry Jianming, this matter will be over. If you are not willing, Sixth Aunt will go to your Sixth Uncle. Even if Mingjie enters the Wei family, we have the marriage certificate in hand, and this marriage does not count!"

Dou Zhao's eyes became hot and he leaned on Ji's shoulder.

The tears quickly soaked Ji's clothes.

"Sixth aunt, I don't want to marry into the Wei family, nor do I want to marry into the Ji family." She choked up, "I just want to stay at home and be a free aunt."

What else could Dou Zhao say if he didn't say this when something like this happened?!

Ji started crying softly.

For a moment, the room felt rather gloomy and sad.

※※※※※

Gu Yu was sitting bored in the wedding tent of Marquis Jining's mansion when he saw Ji Yong.

He was drinking Wei Tingyu's wine together with Dou Wenchang, the eldest son of the Dou family.

When the newlyweds are worshipping in the hall, the people who are escorting the bride have to step away. After the worshipping, the people who are escorting the bride will be arranged to sit at the top seats of the banquet as guests of honor and drink the wedding wine.

Wei Tingyu finished his drink.

Gu Yu couldn't help but whisper "idiot" in contempt, and said to Wang Qinghuai who was sitting next to him and turned his head to socialize with the people at the next table: "Why are all the uncles of the Dou family the same? They force you to drink when they see you? Whoever marries their daughters in the future will be in trouble for the rest of their lives!"

Wang Qinghuai drank a little too much and laughed twice.

Gu Yu stretched his neck and looked around: "Where did Brother Tianci go? The bride has already entered the bridal chamber, why hasn't he come back yet? Could he have gone home?" He felt that Song Mo was not that kind of person, so he called his servant, "Go look for him."

The servant responded and left.

Song Mo looked at the Huaishu Hutong, which was dotted with stars and only a few lights were on, and his face was darker than the night.

"Is there no one in Huaishu Hutong?" he confirmed again.

"Except for a few servants, everyone in the Dou family went to Jing'an Temple Hutong." Zhu Yicheng said with certainty, "Today, the fourth daughter of the Dou family went out to the palace. The fifth wife of the Dou family took her daughter-in-law and grandson and granddaughter to Jing'an Temple Hutong yesterday. They haven't come back yet. Only the old man Dou and a few maids are at home."

Could it be that Dou Zhao is still in Jing'an Temple Hutong?

Song Mo was extremely anxious, his mind racing.

If the Wei family wanted to marry someone else, they could just break off the engagement with the Dou family. Why would they have to use Li as a substitute? It can be seen that the bride had been replaced, and the Wei family was unaware of it.

The Dou family had been officials for generations, and Dou Yuanji was a noble elder. It was impossible for him not to know the consequences of arranging a marriage without authorization. The person who married into the Wei family must be of the same status as Dou Zhao...

He remembered that Dou Zhao had a younger sister.

Could the person who got married be Dou Zhao’s sister?

But why?

Marriage is meant for the good of two families. The Dou family and the Wei family, one civil and one military, belong to different circles, and the Wei family has no power. There is no need for the Dou family to do something that will make people laugh in order to maintain the marriage between the two families.

As the thought flashed through his mind, Song Mo's eyes suddenly flashed coldly.

The summer palace was not as majestic and solemn as the Forbidden City, and the emperor was no longer as solemn as he was in the palace. Not only did he often play with concubines and young princes, but he also often summoned the accompanying Jinwu Guards to perform riding and archery. Because he and Dong Qi both came from prominent families, they were often summoned by the emperor to meet with him.

Just three days ago, the Ministry of War submitted a memorial, requesting the Ministry of Personnel to evaluate Wang Xingyi's performance.

The emperor smiled and said, "Wang Yousheng is also a talented person," and asked Wang Yuan to pass the memorial to Liang Jifang, the chief minister of the cabinet.

Could it be that Wang is behind this?

Song Mo's heart felt as if chili powder was sprinkled on it; it was hot and burning.

asshole!

They're all a bunch of fucking bastards!

Can a proxy marriage be accomplished by one person?

Song Mo thought about the rumors before Dou Zhao got married, and how Dou Zhao asked him not to interfere, saying that she had her own ideas. Did Dou Zhao already notice something at that time?

Dou Zhao was a very smart man. If he looked down on Wei Tingyu, he would have canceled the engagement long ago. Why would he have to make trouble with the Wei family again and again?

She wanted wholeheartedly to marry into the Wei family, but they abruptly broke up her marriage!

Did the Wang family and the Dou family join forces? Or did the Wang family take the lead and the Dou family turned a blind eye?

Wei Tingyu, has he been having an affair with Dou Zhao's sister for a long time?

Getting married only happens once in a lifetime, otherwise which woman would be willing to get married in secret?

Or maybe it was not a secretive marriage at all, but a marriage that was done openly and honestly!

Song Mo's horsewhip swept across the sky and hit the wall with a sharp bang. A corner of the wall brick turned into powder and fell down, leaving a deep mark.

They were just bullying Dou Zhao because she had lost her mother since she was young and there was no one to take charge of the household for her!

"Xia Lian!" Song Mo whispered, "Take a few people to the shop on the main street below the Drum Tower to see if Mr. Chen and his men are there. If they are, take them to Jing'an Temple Hutong. If not, rush to Jing'an Temple Hutong immediately. Zhu Yicheng, follow me."

Xia Lian and others clasped their fists silently, and their figures disappeared into the night like ghosts.

※※※※※

Dou Zhao had finally managed to comfort Ji when he heard the sound of a gong marking the fourth watch.

She couldn't help but look up at the sky.

A crescent moon hung in the sky, and a few stars were shining.

It should be a nice day tomorrow.

Suitable for dealing with Dou Ming's affairs.

Dou Zhao said this in his heart, but then he saw Su Xin walking towards him in a hurry.

"Miss, Guard Duan just gave us a signal, saying that someone broke in and asked us to hide in the house and not come out."

Dou Zhao was stunned and said, "My father is just a minor official of the fifth rank. He didn't even have a place in the morning court. How could anyone want to take over the Dou family? If they want to go, they should go to Huaishu Hutong!"